Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #TheCriminalBar

Most recents (2)

#TheCriminalBar facing oblivion @MaxJLHardy wrote perceptively that the public would get a distorted impression of our justice system because of the #WAGATHA trial. #criminaljustice is in crisis. And @jimrobottom suggested the same for the mass of civil litigation. 1/
The Tabloids don’t want to run this narrative. Clichés work. People, without wealth or financial resilience are far more likely to get dragged into a Criminal Court, a Family Court, or an Employment Tribunal.
Then, they’re not likely to encounter a ‘fat cat lawyer’ but a junior barrister and/or a high street solicitor, from a small to medium size practice. We’re not talking Baroness Shackleton or Lady Ward. 3/
Read 22 tweets
For the whole of my practising career, which began at the time that Tony Blair became PM, lawyers and their fees have been under attack. Legal aid formed about 1/3 of my practice in 1997; I did many disputes concerning residential property interests where legal aid assisted.
1/7
Within a few short years, legal aid was effectively withdrawn for the sort of cases I was involved in. The result is clear - people with few assets and middle incomes now find it impossible to litigate, largely unless insurance policies enable them to do so.
2/7
Other systems to enable litigation have proved difficult - contingency fee arrangements are one example. Today, many lawyers will advise people for free who would not otherwise be able to litigate as a result of not having the funds.
3/7
Read 7 tweets

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